Dust & Grooves: The Book

Back in July 2011, we discussed the New Face of Vinyl. Young vinyl enthusiasts, Ben Meadors and Owen McCafferty, turned to Kickstarter to fund their dream of traveling across the country and meeting teens who were similarly interested in collecting and playing LPs. They met their goal of $6500 and made their way across the US, documenting every step along the way.

Now, Dust & Grooves’ Eilon Paz wants to document every face of vinyl. Paz, a Brooklyn-based photographer and vinyl enthusiast, plans to travel across the country, telling the great American story through its vinyl collectors.

In September 2012, I will embark on a two-month, 11,000-mile, 30-interview Americana journey accompanied by a videographer, with regular appearances on local radio stations, music blogs and dedicated vinyl websites. The cross-country road trip will hit major music heritage hubs like New Orleans, birthplace of jazz, and L.A., home of the Chicano punk rock scene of the ’80s, plus less likely enclaves like Muscle Shoals, AL. These culture-rich areas will connect me with an expansive variety of music meccas and record fans to reveal lost collections and musical oddities. Professional country music archivists in Nashville, basement-dwelling punks on the outskirts of Omaha, and college town record store owners in the southwest will all be documented by my camera.

Sounds like a great time. At the end of his journey, Paz intends to publish a book of his photographs and stories. Like Meadors and McCafferty, Paz has turned to Kickstarter to fund the project. Impressively, with eight days yet to go, he has already surpassed his target of $27,000.

Why do I suddenly feel like I need more records? For more information on Dust & Grooves, visit Paz’s Kickstarter page.

Dust & Grooves Super Sessions
An additional fundraiser, presented by I Love Vinyl, Dust & Groove, and the Sound Liberation Front, will be held on Wednesday, August 8, 7:30pm, at the Botanica Bar (47 East Houston Street, NYC). An all-star cast of DJs and vinyl collectors will be on hand, playing all-vinyl sets to help fund and raise awareness for the Dust & Grooves project.